


Verdancy

by ToastedGhost



Category: Homestuck, MS Paint Adventures
Genre: Adventure, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - No Sburb Session, F/F, Fluff, Humor, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-12-27
Updated: 2012-12-27
Packaged: 2017-11-22 16:36:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 19,727
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/611916
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ToastedGhost/pseuds/ToastedGhost
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Rose embarks on a journey to a far away island, to study a strange group of mutated species, she anticipates a little action and adventure. But what she finds instead is far more than she ever expected...</p><p>Rose/Jade Tarzan!AU for Ladyfest 2012</p>
            </blockquote>





	Verdancy

**Author's Note:**

  * For [atermoiements](https://archiveofourown.org/users/atermoiements/gifts).



> Dear jonesy- I hope you like it! I had a lot of fun with your request!! It got a little longer than I wanted, but at the same time, I wish I had more time to write more. It's been a long time since I've finished a fic, so I hope it's alright... Also sorry for all the crack science. Just pretend it's my artistic license!

Rose inhaled deeply as she surveyed the land around her. Everything was verdant and green and overflowing with life. It was a relief to have solid ground under her feet again. The boat ride to the island had been too long, and she could still feel the sway of the waves rolling around in the pit of her stomach. Or maybe it was nerves, it was hard to tell.

  
Because after all, this would be her home for the next two months. There wasn't a sign of civilization in sight. She wasn't sure whether that worried her yet or not.

  
Jake, the head of the project, called her name enthusiastically as he emerged from the treeline, where the jungle met the sandy beach. “Rose! It's so good that you're finally here!” He picked up the two large trunks she had brought with her as if they weighed nothing. “Everyone has been in full swing for about a month now- you're the last to arrive. C'mon, this way, I'll take you in to the camp!”

  
There was a small path leading into the jungle, and within her first few steps, Rose tripped.

  
“Oh, gosh, are you alright? The pumpkin vines here are a little, er, well, out of control. Mind your step then!”

  
Rose tried not to view it as an omen that she was only two steps into the jungle and already stumbling over things. This was going to work out. It had to.

  
The jungle around them was dark and noisy- nothing at all like the forests she had grown up with at home. This one was _lush_ and teeming with life. She followed Jake along the narrow, twisting path.

  
Short strands of her blond hair began to stick to her face as she slowly huffed her way up a steep hill.

The undergrowth swelled around them and then without any warning, opened up into a large clearing. The was a motley grouping of large tents and fabric canopies, all surrounding a large, white building. It jutted up from the ground like an old skeleton, and though it was decayed and decrepit beyond repair, it was still beautiful.

Jake saw her staring. “Grand old house, isn't she? It's been abandoned for almost twenty years now, I'd say, but golly it must have been a nice house back in the day. I tried to clean the place up a bit but I'm afraid I never made much progress."

Before Rose could comment, Jake was already moving towards the grouping of tents. “Alright everyone, Ms. Lalonde has arrived, let's get her caught up and raring to go!”

A mop of dark brown curls popped out of the tent right next to Rose, startling her. “Good morning Miss Lalonde,” the girl said jokingly.

“Hello, Aradia, no need to be so formal.” Rose answered curtly, and Aradia giggled.

“I'm glad you made it out here ok Rose. I really think we're getting to the point in our studies where your expertise will be most useful, and everyone has been just dying to meet you!”

Rose smiled at her friend. “If only because you gave them such a glowing recommendation for me.”

Aradia laughed and climbed out of her tent. “C'mon, I'll introduce you to everyone.” She took Rose's arm and led her into the camp.

There were cables and wires strung everywhere. There were even a few overhead, with some clothes hanging off them. Rose raised her eyebrow, but Aradia only shrugged. “The only source of power we get here is through our generators, but we need a ton of equipment to work.”

“And the laundry?” Rose inquired.

Another shrug. “Feferi's clothes tend to get wet a lot. We make do with what we have, and she's very resourceful. Here, I'll introduce you to her first.” Aradia steered her towards a large open tent that was filled with a large assortment of tanks. A short girl in a multicolored skirt poked her head out from behind a tank as the two approached.

“Hi! I'm Feferi, you must be Rose!” The girl offered her hand, and Rose shook it.

“It's a pleasure to meet you.” A timer went off somewhere in the back of the the tent and Feferi added a violet liquid to the large tank in front of her. Rose peered inside and saw tiny baby seahorses, pure white.

“What part of the project are you working on?” she asked.

“Oh! Well, I've been working with the marine species of lusii we've encountered so far. We've only managed to obtain two of them in captivity, but I believe there are more we just don't know about. I've been studying them independently for a while now and I was just so excited when Jake asked if I would come on and help with the project!”

Rose couldn't help but smile at the girl's enthusiasm. Another timer sounded, this one much louder.

“Excuse me,” Feferi said, “but the seagoats get a little agitated when they don't get their scheduled feedings.” She hurried off to the back of the tent.

“Seagoats.” Rose affirmed, looking at Aradia, who smiled.

“Oh yes, the lusii are new animals entirely. Some, like the seahorses, look familiar, but I promise you they are very unique. I'll introduce you to Tavros, he's the one to talk to if you want to know about all the different species.”

Tavros was in the tent next to Feferi's. There were tanks, but they weren't filled with water. Instead they housed small white crabs. Another, larger tank held a white spider about the size of Rose's fist. She leaned in to study it a little closer, but a hand on her shoulder gently pulled her back.  
“I, uh, wouldn't get too close to that one if I were you.” Rose turned and saw a boy, a little younger than she was, smiling pleasantly at her. “She tends to get a little, um, upset when she meets new people. I'm Tavros, if you didn't know.”

Rose shook his hand. “Good to meet you Tavros. I hear you're the one to talk to about the various species.”

The boy grinned shyly. “Well, yeah I guess you could say that. I'm in charge of the all the animals that fall under the terrestrial category. Feferi is in charge of the marine. Which is good because they uh, don't seem to like me as much. But the others and I get along really well!”

Ahh, interesting.” Rose said raising an eyebrow thoughtfully. “You must have a lot of experience working with them.”

Tavros only shrugged. “Animals just like me. They seem to respond to me better than anyone else. Um, I'm not really sure why or anything, but they just do. I was going to school to be a vet before this but, well, this seemed more interesting. And Aradia and I have been friends since we were kids so...”

“May I see the rest of the species you have here?” Rose inquired.

“Oh sure!” Tavros brightened up immediately. “We don't keep any full adults in captivity, of course, because they get so, well, large. But we've managed to make a pretty decent study out of the adolescents. Mostly we go out in parties and try to observe them naturally.”  
He showed her another spider, explaining that they had to be kept separately otherwise they grew quite violent, and a small sleeping ram with strangely elongated proportions and overlarge horns. Aradia mentioned that she was especially fond of it. “Oh and you've got to show her your favorite, Tav!”

Intrigued, Rose followed the two into the back of the large tent. Inside a large birdcage was a... well, Rose wasn't really sure what it was. It was hovering in the center of the cage by beating distinctly insect-like wings very fast, but its body was appeared quite mammalian- almost bovine. One of it's legs was injured and bandaged.

“We found it by accident,” Aradia said. “We've never seen any of the others because they fly so fast, so we aren't sure if it's an adult or an adolescent. Tavros has been calling it 'Tinkerbull'.” She smiled as Tavros blushed.

“That seems... strangely appropriate, actually.” Rose admitted, and Aradia laughed.

“It's not the oddest species we've encountered yet either. Come with me and I can introduce you to our tech team. They'll be able to show you the video footage we've collected so far.

Over the next hour, Rose met Sollux, Horuss and Equius. Sollux, the head of the techs, reluctantly pulled himself away from something involving genetic sequencing to show her the photo stills and video footage they had compiled. There were 11 completely separate species in all and each was stranger than the next.

“Is that...?” She trailed off, unsure and feeling out of her depth.  
Aradia nodded next to her. “We haven't been able to get more than a few blurry shots, but it does appear to look rather Draconic, doesn't it?”

“Indeed,” Rose murmured. “Perhaps... perhaps this is where the legends originated. It's not impossible that it may have been seen by earlier explorers.”

“Yes, we've thought much of the same thing. And look at this one” She said, pointing to another image on the computer.

“Jethuth Ara, how many timeth do I have to tell you- don't touch the thcreen!” The lead tech groused as he enlarged the image that Aradia requested. They looked through images of cats with two mouths, and a creature that looked suspiciously like a centaur.

“This is a bigger project than I was originally led to believe.” Rose said pointedly and Aradia sighed.

“We know. But we haven't been able to get much funding yet, because the things we claim to find just seem so outrageous. You're one of the most well known psychologists in your field. I hope that if we can really get a solid group together and publish these findings, we can get some support and some real answers.”

Rose hummed thoughtfully. “What exactly are you expecting me to do here? It's not just because of my mother, is it?”

“Honestly?” Aradia admitted, “Maybe a little. She's famous, but so are you, Rose. You're the youngest person to ever receive an award from the APA and we're hoping that if this is something you're backing, maybe the scientific community will start to take notice. Not to mention that you didn't win that award for no reason. I think we could really use your help.”

For a moment Rose was silent, so Aradia continued. “I know it's not really your field, but maybe this is your chance to break out and do something different. I really think it will do you some good to work here with us, and we could really use your legendary psychoanalytical powers.” The girl winked at her and Rose broke.

“Flattery will get you everywhere.” she responded. “Alright, I suppose there's no harm in spending a couple months. If nothing else, maybe the APA will give me another award.”

Aradia giggled. “Okay, there's one more person on the team that I want to introduce you to. You'll be working with her a lot in the beginning, I'm sure, as she's been in charge of all our records so far. She can really catch you up on everything you've missed since we started the project.”  
She led the way out of the tech area to a tent pitched up right against the wall of the old house. Before they entered, Aradia whispered conspiratorially, “She does tend to get a little... carried away on certain subjects, just be warned.”

“I can hear you, you know!” Came a voice from inside the tent, and Aradia rolled her eyes as they entered. A young woman was sitting behind a desk with neatly stacked piles of books surrounding her. She was writing rapidly in a notebook, which she closed with a sigh as they walked in.

“Really, Aradia, I know you'd rather be off on dangerous explorations with Jake, but that's no reason to dismiss the literary side of this project. The history of this place is vital to understanding things, and you can't find everything out by going on reckless adventures to observe these creatures. I'll have you know that the only reason Rose is here at all, is because of the paper I published. With information I found out from reading the books recovered from the house.” She adjusted her blue, horn rimmed glasses and glared at Aradia pointedly.

“But who found those books for you by going off on a 'reckless adventure?” Aradia teased, and the girl huffed and turned to Rose with a smile.

“Hello, I'm Aranea. I'm the project's historian, and I'm also in charge of all the records here. It's wonderful to meet someone who I'm sure understands the merits of research and how important the events of the past can be.”

“Indeed,” Rose nodded, “I'd love to hear about what you've compiled so far.” And with that, Aranea's eyes lit up.

“I'll see you later, Rose,” called Aradia, “Jake and I have to organize another 'reckless adventure'.” She winked again, and disappeared through the front flap of the tent.

Aranea tried to hide her smile, but failed. “It's not that I don't approve of their methods,” she admitted. “It's only that I think they are too quick to dismiss how important my job is. However, it is true that without the two of them, this project would never have even existed. How did you get involved? It doesn't really seem like your area of study.”

“Aradia was my roommate for two years in college. She and I have been friends ever since, even though we went on to study very different things. I knew she had started working on this project, but never gave it much of a thought until I read your paper. I was... looking for a change, I guess you could say. Aradia and I talked and she suggested I come down and work on the project for a few months to see how I liked it. While it's not quite my field of study, I'm glad to have to opportunity to work on something so scientifically promising.”

The dark-haired girl nodded. “You've already received an award from the APA, haven't you?”

Rose shrugged. “Yes, but I've often felt my mother's own fame in the field had something to do with it. I'd like to know that I can branch out and work on my own projects. Now, Aradia mentioned that you could get me caught up to date with the progress so far.” she added, attempting to steer the conversation away from her issues with her mother. It worked.

Aranea instantly launched into historian mode. She told Rose about the history of the island, and the legends that surrounded it, along with the inhabitants over time. When she mentioned the name Harley for the third time, Rose had to admit that she didn't know who the girl was referring to. Aranea was shocked.

“You mean Jake didn't already tell you?'

The blond girl shook her head. “Most of my dealings have been with Aradia. Though Jake and I have spoken a bit, I've only met him for the first time today.”

“Ah, well. Mr. Harley was the one who built this house. He was a recluse, but an amazing pioneer in the exploration of a lot of the islands around here. He decided to live on this particular one, we assume, after discovering the lusii. He was the one who named them, and most of our information comes through the papers we found in his house. But he died soon after building it, and no one is exactly sure what happened. It's all very mysterious!” Aranea sighed happily. “Jake is related to him, you know. His grandmother and Mr. Harley were siblings. When his grandmother passed away, Jake inherited the island. No one has been here since Mr. Harley passed away, which is why the discovery of these species hasn't been widely known. Mr Harley didn't live long enough to publish his research and no one has been here to rediscover anything.”

“It is rather isolated,” Rose murmured, remembering the boat ride earlier in the day.

The two girls talked for a little longer before things started to blur together and Rose began yawning. “I'm terribly sorry to have to end this enlightening chat, but I fear I haven't quite adjusted to the time difference here yet.”

“Oh of course! Aranea said. “I forgot that you only arrived this morning. “I'm sure Jake has set a tent up for you near the rest of ours. I'll take you there now.”

“Thank you,” Rose replied gratefully.

Aranea continued to talk as they made their way over to the area where the sleeping tents were, but Rose was too tired to concentrate. The events of the day felt like they were finally catching up with her.

The inside of her tent was basic and small but there was a bed and that was all Rose cared about at the moment. Aranea left with the promise to bring her some dinner later, and Rose fell asleep almost immediately.

 

~

 

Rose woke to complete silence. She was disoriented, and it took her a few seconds to place where she was. There was a weak light filtering in through the front flap the tent, and Rose's watch read that it was almost quarter after four in the morning. She sighed, resigning herself that it would still be a few days before she could adjust to the large time difference. She knew that she wouldn't be able to get back to sleep so she slipped out of bed and decided to unpack the suitcases she had brought with her.

There was a plate of vegetables and a bowl of now-cold soup sitting on top of a small fold-able card table. Rose was embarrassed that she had slept so heavily that she hadn't even heard anyone come in, but it couldn't be helped. The sleep already made her feel better than she had yesterday, like a fog had been lifted, and she found herself almost excited by the prospect of getting to work on such promising research.

She dressed, then ate her cold dinner in silence. It was about 5:30 by the time she left her tent but there was no sign that anyone else was up. It was pleasantly warm, just about the beginning of summer, though it has been a cold and dreary autumn when she left home. The sun wasn't quite up yet, but it was still light enough to see. Rose walked around the camp quietly for a bit before she spied a path that looked like it would lead down to the beach.

The island itself wasn't very large. She had learned from Aranea that is was vaguely crescent shaped, and had beaches running along both the east and west coasts. She had also assured Rose that the volcano that had originally formed the island thousands of years ago, had not been active since. Besides the volcano, Mr. Harley's house and the teams camp was set up at the highest point, so Rose's walk down to the east beach was all downhill. The path was well worn, but even so, huge pumpkin vines threatened to take over. She wondered if the strange appearance of wild pumpkins had anything to do with the lusii, and made a mental note to ask Aradia later.

All at once the jungle cleared and gave way to the ocean. There was a small beach, broken up heavily with large piles of rocks that jutted out into the ocean. The sand on the beach itself was soft and Rose quickly removed her shoes to walk through it. A short way out into the ocean, there were... ruins of some sort. Rose vaguely recalled Aranea telling her about the early aboriginal culture that had lived on the island hundreds of years ago. Perhaps this was a remnant.

She stood at the edge of the water, letting the waves gently lap over her bare feet. She felt oddly calm in this place, on this island out in the middle of the Pacific. At home she had a job and a life secured and in place and waiting for her. Everyone expected her to follow in the fame of her mother, and for a long time, Rose had thought she wanted it as well. But things had changed and growing into her own person, while still living in her mother's shadow had seemed impossible.

And so... here she was. Out on an island in the middle of the Pacific. About to study the behavior and interactions of previously undiscovered species. This was the cusp of something wondrous, she felt. For the first time in a long time, Rose felt like she was making the right choice.

A rustling in the jungle startled her out of her internal reverie. She whirled around, realizing belatedly that no one know where she was, and if she was attacked by one of the more violent lusii, no one was even awake to come help her. However a moment later, Feferi emerged from the jungle, putting her fears quickly to rest.

The girl was wearing a bright pink swimsuit, and had her hair bound tightly in a braid behind her. Upon seeing Rose, she broke out in a wide smile and skipped up to greet her.

“Good morning Rose! You're up quite early!”

“Ah yes, but I have the excuse of being completely out of my time zone. I rather think that it's you who is up early.”

“Oh, I get up early every morning to have a swim. I like to dive out to the ruins, and search for more evidence of the lusii underwater. Sometimes, Jake will come with me, but Aradia claims she can't swim.” the girl pouted. “She always wants to have adventures and there is nothing more exciting than going on a dive! But, she won't let me teach her.” Feferi brightened all of a sudden. “Would you be interested in coming for a dive sometime?”

“I'm afraid I'll have to side with Aradia on this one. I've grown up near the ocean but I confess I never learned to swim.” Feferi's face fell so Rose quickly added, “Though perhaps I may be persuaded to learn once I get my bearings here.”

That did the trick, and Feferi clapped enthusiastically. “Oh wonderful! It's very exciting, you'll love it I promise. Well, I'm off, then. Catch you later, Rose!” And with that, she dove into the ocean, and was out of sight in seconds. Rose saw her dark head pop up a moment later, a great distance away, and concluded that the girl must be an excellent swimmer.

She stood for a few minutes more watching Feferi swim around, then decided to head back to the camp. Perhaps someone would be up.

The jungle was dark. The early morning light hardly filtered down through the canopy of trees, and Rose felt oddly like she was being watched.

She couldn't see anything through the thick undergrowth and the forest was still and quiet but... she couldn't quite shake the feeling, and she hurried quickly back to camp.

Jake was up and cooking sausages over a small fire when Rose returned. “Well, hello then, you're up quite early! Jet lag, I suppose?” he asked.

“It would certainly seem that way. Though feeling much better than yesterday, and I'm sure I'll be able to get a sufficient amount of work done.” Rose responded, sitting down next to him.

“Splendid!” Jake said, clapping his hands together. “Aranea tells me you two went over quite a lot of information yesterday, and Rose nodded.

“Yes, she was most informative. I think we'll work well together.” They sat in silence for a few moments before Rose asked, “Is there anyone else here besides the research group?”

Jake stilled next to her. “No, there's only us. Why do you ask?”

“No particular reason, just letting my curiosity get the best of me.” It had probably been nothing, she reasoned in her head.

Jake was silent for a moment before he said, “There have been rumors, of course. You can't have a mysterious death on a mysterious island without having a good ghost story or two.”

Scoffing, Rose replied, “Surely you don't believe in ghosts, Mr. English.”

He only shook his head slowly. “I'm not sure what to believe. I've seen every inch of this damn island personally and sometimes things just... happen that I can't explain. Aradia swears the old house is haunted. If you want to hear a good ghost story, she's the gal to ask.” He seemed to shake himself out of his solemn demeanor. “Well, breakfast isn't going to cook itself!”

Then of course later on while everyone ate breakfast together, Jake convinced Aradia to tell some of her ghost stories. Most were, as Rose suspected, about the late Mr. Harley, but one was about a forest spirit who lived in the jungle, spying on unknowing adventurers. It then snatched them the moment they ventured off their paths.

The stories left her uneasy, though she had never been one to believe in ghosts before. However the feeling quickly fell away as she started working with Aranea, and all thoughts of ghosts were pushed far from her mind, in favor of analyzing the group swarming patterns of the 'Tinkerbulls'.

She was able to stay awake the entire day, and found herself enjoying the company of her fellow researchers. Feferi was constantly bubbly and was never short of something to talk about, and Tavros was exceptionally sweet and dedicated to both his research and the animals under his care. She didn't see much of Sollux, but Aranea assured her it was normal. His assistant, Horuss, was slightly more sociable, but awkward in a hilarious way. Equius, who Rose learned was Horuss' younger brother, said very little. However he was an excellent cook and prepared dinner for the group, which they all sat down together to enjoy.

They all seemed to get along so well, as if they had known each other for years. When she mentioned this to Aranea, the girl confirmed that most of them had. She tried to explain Aradia's connection to Sollux and Tavros, and her own history with Jake, but Rose found herself growing tired and unable to follow it. The group disbanded shortly after and Rose wearily headed back to her own tent. However she was shortly stopped by Equius, who silently handed her a steaming mug of tea.

“Why, thank you so much. It's just what I needed to end the evening.”  
Equius nodded. “It's a privilege to have someone of your standing here helping us with our project. Please let me know if I can help you in any way.”

Rose thanked him again, and they said goodnight. Once she was inside her own tent, she allowed the exhaustion she was feeling catch up to her.

Sipping her tea, she looked out into the forest through the back flap of her tent. The first stars were beginning to show in the sky and she was startled to realize she didn't recognize any of them. The forest stretched before her was alive with noises and insects. It was so different from home. But that was a good thing, she reminded herself. All that was waiting for her at home were shoes too big to fill and a mother she could never quite measure up to- though not for lack of trying.  
She'd shaped her whole life around trying to make her mother proud. She worked hard and studied the right things. She got into an excellent

college on a scholarship and majored in Phsycology. She had been the youngest recipient of the APA's _Award for Distinguished Scientific Contributions to Psychology_. It was a joke. Her mother was on the committee and Rose was sure she had a hand in ensuring she would receive the award. Coming to this island was her chance to prove she could make contributions and advancements without anyone's influence.

As tea in her hand grew colder, the forest seemed to settle as well. The sun had set and it was fully dark now. Only the distant glow of moon remained. In the distance, some kind of wild dog howled, and the cataphony of the forest seemed to rise up again to meet it.  
And, in the midst of the noise, Rose swore she could hear laughter.

 

~

 

Rose woke up early again the next morning, but this time the sun was at least up. By the time she was up and dressed, it was almost 7. However, upon exiting her tent, she saw no signs that anyone else was awake. Breathing in the cool morning air, she decided to take the path down to the beach again.

The sun was just beginning to filter in through the jungle's thick green canopy, and Rose could hear birdsong off in the distance. She navigated around the pumpkin vines as best she could, but her skirt snagged on the prickly edges of a stem. As she unattached herself from the offending fauna, she had the feeling of being watched again.

She quickly whirled around behind her. For a heartbeat, everything was absolutely still. But in the next moment she saw a flash of white fur as it darted behind the nearest tree. Rose's breath was caught in her throat as she slowly crept forward towards it. Then all at once, the creature burst out of hiding and flew straight towards her.

She let out an undignified shriek, and threw her hands up in front of her face, bracing herself for impact.

It never came.

Slowly, she lowered her hands and unclenched her eyes. What she saw immediately made her gasp in surprise.

A lusii!

It was very small and completely pure white, and was only slightly larger than the creature of the same species that Tavros had back at camp. It hovered directly in front of her before darting back and forth, seemingly quite enthused to see her. It finally settled on the ground and Rose crouched down to get a better look. Its eyes were overlarge and red. An albino, just like the rest of it's species. Rose was absolutely captivated.

She slowly removed the small notebook she had stashed in her bag, trying her hardest not to startle the creature, though it appeared to be much entertained with nosing at her shoelaces. She quickly began to take notes, taking care to include estimated measurements and even including a crude sketch of the creatures itself.

"Where are the rest of you, now, hmm?" The lusii was now sniffing at her notebook and launched itself up suddenly, in an attempt to get a better look. Rose startled, but found herself laughing as the curious animal invaded her personal space, zooming around and trilling happily.

A strange buzzing suddenly filled her ears and all at once, a huge flock of the flying bulls burst out of the forest and swarmed overhead. Rose was entranced, as she watched their strange, synchronized flight. However, a deep rumble suddenly filled the forest, and the creatures were gone just as quickly as they had arrived. Her small friend gave an urgent " _meep_ ", before quickly fleeing with the rest of its kind.

A cold wash of fear spilled over Rose as the thundering noise grew louder and before Rose even had a chance to discern the direction it was coming from, a white spider the size of a fully grown elephant came blundering out of the forest, screeching wildly.

Rose scrambled away from the enraged arachnid, and clambered up one of the large pumpkin vines that wound it's way up a tall tree. She climbed up it as fast as she could, but her grip kept slipping. The spider had almost reached her, and all eight of its gleaming red eyes were completely focused on her.

All of a sudden, another noise broke through the forest. Rose almost didn't hear it over the roaring of blood in her ears, but it was so jarringly out of place that she couldn't help but turn her head towards the source. It sounded like a wolf howl. Or, more accurately, a human trying to howl like a wolf, at the top of their lungs.

It was at that moment that Rose's grip on the vine finally gave out, and she screamed as she plummeted down towards the spider. However, her scream was cut short as the wind was completely knocked out of her. Something had grabbed her hard, right around her waist, and it wasn't letting her go. She struggled, thinking she was in the grasp of the spider's fangs but when she opened her eyes, she saw the ground falling away beneath her, the arachnid getting smaller by the second.

She was slung over the shoulder of a person, and they were moving through the forest at an alarmingly high speed by... swinging from the pumpkin vines? She couldn't see the face of her rescuer, but as they slowed down, she caught a glimpse of tanned skin and black hair.

"Jake!" she cried, "If this is some kind of a joke I'll-!" her threat was cut off as they stopped and she was abruptly swung down. She landed flat on her back on the top of a wide branch. Her head snapped up to chastise Jake for his unnervingly rude behavior when she faltered.  
It wasn't Jake that had rescued her from the spider. It was... a girl, who looked to be about her own age.

Her long black hair was in a mess of tangles and was interspersed with brambles and flowers. Her eyes were a piercing shade of green, amplified through the huge circular glasses she wore. She was grinning wildly and struck her hand straight out in front of Rose's face.

"Uh." Rose said eloquently, then tentatively accepted the girl's proffered hand. Against all odds, the girl's smile grew wider and she shook Rose's hand enthusiastically, practically throwing her entire body weight into it.

"Ah, yes, very nice to meet you. Thanks you so much for saving me, though I must admit, your methods are a little, well, unconventional." The girl stopped yanking Rose's hand and her smile faded slightly. She tilted her head to the side almost like a dog might and Rose was startled to actually *see* two large white dog ears emerging from the girl's jet black hair.

"I apologize, I didn't mean to say that I disagreed with your methods, it's only just that I've never been rescued by a vine-swinging Amazon before. You must excuse my rudeness." Rose couldn't keep the small note of mirth from entering her voice.

However the only girl squinted at her, through bespectacled eyes.

"Oh, perhaps you don't speak English. _Sprechen sie Deutsch?_ No? _Ou peut-être le français? Kanske Svenska?_ No? I'll try Eldrich then." Rose cleared her throat, " _Th'oth grarb lhelm Gl'bgolyb?_ "

At the last, the girl began giggling and then with an air of great concentration said, "I... yes!" and proceeded to look very proud of herself.

Rose was momentarily stunned but recovered quickly. "Ah, so you do know some English! Very good."

"Very good!" the girl parroted back, and then laughed.

"How much English can you speak?" Rose asked slowly, but the girl only wrinkled her nose and shook her head.

"Very well then," Rose mock-sighed, "I supposed we'll start with the basics." She composed herself and placed a hand over her breastbone. "Rose. My name is Rose."

The girl's eyes widened impossibly larger behind her glasses, and she grabbed Rose's free hand. Placing it over her own heart, she eagerly whispered, "Jade!"

There was a long beat of silence, and Rose could hear her pulse hammering in her ears. Jade's eyes were intensely green and bright and there were tiny sun-freckles dotting the bridge of her nose and all of a sudden Rose realized just how _close_ the other girl had gotten to her. Before she could offer even a single word of protest, Jade stood up, still holding Rose's hand and pulling her up with her. She then proceeded to grab her tightly around the waist and just as Rose was about to make an effort to explain the concept of “personal space”, they were off swinging on pumpkin vines again.

It was strangely exhilarating, but just as Rose was getting used to the situation,Jade abruptly stopped and gently lowered Rose the last several feet towards the ground. Rose realized Jade had brought her almost right into camp.

“Come with me,” she insisted, tugging Jade's hand and trying to make her intentions known. But Jade shook her head so wildly, she dislodged a few flowers. And then in the blink of an eye, she was swinging away and swallowed up by the jungle.

Rose stood, stunned and rooted to the spot for a long moment. Then the reality of what had just happened sunk in, and she ran as fast as she could back into the camp. She immediately spotted Jake cooking breakfast over the campfire again, and as luck would have it, Aradia was with him. She looked up when she saw Rose running over.

“Rose? What's happened?” She and Jake were on their feet in an instant, crowding her space. “Did you get lost in the jungle? Are you hurt?”

Rose shook her head vehemently, her blond hair swishing back and forth. “No look, I saw. Well, I saw more than one thing actually. I only went to walk down to the beach, you see. But then I saw a lusii! And then more came! But I was attacked and then... and then...” the vigor seemed to leave her all at once. “There was... a girl. She saved me.”

“Woah woah, there, Ms. Lalonde. Please, have a seat and start from the beginning.” Jake lead her into one of the folding chairs set up around the campfire. Aradia and Jake also claimed chairs and quickly scooted them up into Rose's space.

Rose laughed wryly and pinched the bridge of her nose. Taking a deep breath she continued, “I apologize, I don't usually get quite so flustered. I woke up rather early yesterday, and took a nice walk down to the beach, where I ran into Feferi, who was going for her daily swim. This morning, I also awoke early and decided to repeat my actions of the previous day. However, on my way down to the beach, I spotted a lusii.”

Aradia and Jake both gasped and scooted closer. “Rose, that's amazing they're usually nocturnal! What kind did you see?” “Yes, Ms. Lalonde, were you able to identify it? Did you get a good look?” They clamored eagerly.

Despite her own reservation, she couldn't help but smile at their mannerisms. “It was one of those 'Tinkerbulls' that Tavros favors. Oh and that reminds me.” She pulled her field notebook out of her bag, and quickly flipped to the page with her notes. “I apologize for not having much time, but I tried to record any information that I could.” She handed the book to Jake, who's eyes got wide.

“Oh gosh, this is wonderful! You're not even trained for this and you've done great! Aradia, remind me later to give Rose one of those disposable camera things, so she can take photos if she has anymore encounters. Now, please do continue on with your story!”

“Well, the animal seemed quite friendly and curious. It even pulled at one of my shoelaces. Before I could take more than a few notes however, a whole swarm of them appeared in the sky. And, I can definitely confirm that they do follow a synchronized flying pattern. It was truly surreal.”

“Incredible! I knew you'd be a big help here Ms, Lalonde! Why you've only been here two days and-”

“Jake,” Aradia cut him off. “I would really like to hear the rest of Rose's story, okay?”

“Ah,” he said, admonished, “My apologies, I get a little over eager sometimes, please continue.”

Rose nodded. “The swarm came and left quite quickly, and my new friend fled along with them.”

“Wait, fled? What-” Jake started, and Aradia elbowed him.

“I was also puzzled, but their behavior seemed to indicate nothing else. And a moment later I realized why. A huge lusii spider came barreling into the spot where the Tinkerbulls had just been.” Aradia gasped, her eyes wide. “Oh Rose!”

“Yes, I know, I found myself in quite the predicament. Escape seemed futile and I truly feared for my safety.” Jake and Aradia leaned closer, and Rose smiled at their antics.

“I was... rescued.” Rose paused, expecting they would immediately be clamoring with questions, but none were forthcoming. They instead just looked puzzled. “I was rescued,” she repeated, “by a girl.” There was still no reaction, and so Rose elaborated, growing frustrated. “She was swinging from the pumpkin vines and she saved me from the lusii. She had the longest black hair, and the greenest eyes I'd ever seen. It was like... it was like she was some kind of Amazon.”

Jake and Aradia exchanged a look. “Rose,” Jake said gently, “are you sure you haven't been thinking too much on Aradia's ghost stories?”

“It seems unusual, I know, but I wouldn't be here if she hadn't saved me. You have to believe me, there really was a girl, not just some forest spirit out of a story.” Rose insisted.

"Of course we want to believe you Rose, but between us we've explored just about every inch of this island. There's never been even a single sign that another human being was living here.” Aradia said, “And you have to admit, she does sound like the forest spirit from my story.”

Rose stood abruptly. “Maybe there is some truth behind the story. Maybe she's the truth behind all the rumors of ghosts. But whoever she is, I owe her my life.” She gazed out towards the jungle. “And I will find her again.”

All at once there was a rustling sound from the trees. Jake shot up, and Aradia followed suit a second later. It sounded like someone walking through the undergrowth and Rose felt her heart leap into her throat. They all tensed as something finally emerged and then-  
A collective groan went up as Feferi stepped into view, toweling her hair dry from her morning's swim. “Hi guys, wha'd I miss?”

 

~

 

By evening, Rose's story had spread through camp, and much to her delight, a few of the others backed her up. Tavros and Feferi both claimed to have seen glimpses of something in the trees, and Tavros said in one instance, he actually snapped a photo. But even though the team had Sollux work on digitally enhancing the image, no one could discern seeing more than a slight blur.

The evening ended with Rose feeling tired and frustrated and doubting herself. What if she had just made it up somehow? What if she was having some sort of episode of substitutional memory loss? She had read about it happening in some extreme cases- where the brain inserted a new memory to block out the old one,during times of trauma. But how could she have come up with Jade?

Sighing and resigning herself to a sleepless night, she headed to her tent to wind down with a hot cup of tea and a dogeared copy of _Harry Potter_.

She was hardly a quarter into the book before she heard a strange sound outside her tent. It was like... like someone was trying to whisper and bark like a dog at the same time. Rose jumped to her feet and was outside her tent in seconds.

“Jade?” she called tentatively, trying to keep her voice down. There was no one in sight, but on the ground directly in front of her tent, was a deliberately placed violet flower.

Rose smiled.

 

~

 

Almost a week went by with Rose never actually seeing Jade, but finding small flowers or shells placed strategically where she would find them. Any skepticism other members of her team had felt vanished after Rose showed them the flower of the first night. “Jake!” Aranea had gasped, “This is a orchid from the _Phalaenopsis_ genus! Unless Rose climbed up to the summit of the volcano just to uphold her story, I'd say someone gave it to her. It doesn't grow anywhere else on the island!”

Relief washed over Rose as Jake turned to her with wide eyes. “As if previously undiscovered species weren't enough, now you've gone and given us a mysterious wild woman!” He whooped with joy. “This is the best island ever!” He and Aradia had wanted to go on a search for more evidence of her existence immediately, but without warning a swarm of Tinkerbulls flew straight into the camp's clearing, leaving everyone astonished and busy.

The next morning, Rose received another flower, and the team received the privilege of having a cat lusii, the size of a baby elephant, wander into camp only to promptly lay down for a nap in the sunniest part of camp. It slept until the dark and the team had a field day taking hair samples and measurements.

The third morning seemed rather anticlimactic when nothing immediately wandered into camp, but towards sunset a large shadow flew overhead, and Sollux managed to get a great shot of the elusive dragon-like lusii.

The Tinkerbulls returned on the fourth day, and Rose enjoyed tracking their synchronized flight and their community behaviors. “It's so wonderful, Rose.” Aradia had exclaimed. “We've gotten more information over the past four days then we have in months of being here.”  
Rose deliberately woke early the next day and took the path through the jungle down to the beach. “Jade?” she called, after she had been walking for a few minutes. There was no answer.

“Jade, if you can hear me...” she trailed off, unsure of how to continue. “Well, I just want to thank you properly, for saving my life and for all the flowers. I assume you have a hand in the lusii suddenly showing up as well, and I just want you to know that we all appreciate it immensely.” Still there was nothing but silence, and Rose sighed, wondering if she'd ever see the other girl again. She was struck with an idea all at once, and she hurried back to camp. It didn't take her long to unpack the knitting needles and yarn she had stowed away in her trunk. Undisturbed by her fellow researchers, as the Tinkerbulls had arrived yet again, she started to work.

It was late in the evening before she had finished. Her fingers were sore and her back cracked painfully as she stood, but she felt accomplished.

Rose placed her gift for Jade on ground in front of her tent, mirroring where Jade had left the orchid the first day. She went to bed, but tossed and turned all night, waking at every sound. It wasn't until just before dawn the following morning that Rose heard the small gasp. She was awake and out of bed in an instant. Slowly she peeked out of the tent flap and saw Jade, crouched down and carefully lifting up her present. Rose tried to be quiet, but Jade must have heard her anyway because she suddenly sprung up and looked like she was about to bolt.

“No wait, Jade, please!” The girl stopped and slowly turned towards Rose, who carefully made her way over. She stopped and picked up the stuffed toy she had knitted, and handed it to Jade. “Since you have been so thoughtful and generous, I only thought it fitting to give something in return. I realize it's a rather paltry gift, but I don't really know how to make anything else besides scarves and laptop cozies, both of which, I fear, would be wildly impractical for you.”

Jade tentatively reached out and accepted the small plush from Rose. “Thank you...” she said, her voice strange and halting.

“It's called a Squiddle.” Rose said, “And I made him just for you.” She was attempting to keep her voice slow and her words simple, and it seemed to be successful because Jade's face lit up.

“Thank you,” she repeated again, more sure this time. “Thank you for the... hmm, Squiddle.”

Rose smiled at her. “Please stay and meet my friends. They would like to thank you for your gifts. And if you are responsible for the lusii appearing, we could really use your help.”

Jade hesitated noticeably. She worried her bottom lip between her teeth and her expressive eyes were dark as she stared at the ground. But when she looked up she was grinning.

“Okay.” she agreed. “But...” and she made a sort of circular motion with her hands. Towards herself, then towards Rose. “I want to. Hmm. I want to.” She pointed to her throat and Rose suddenly understood.

“Oh! You want me to teach you how to speak?”

“Yes!” Jade exclaimed, clapping her hands excitedly. She then tucked the Squiddle into the belt around her waist, spat on her palm of her hand and held it out for Rose to presumably shake. “Deal?” she asked, and Rose wondered where on earth she might have learned that gesture.

However, she shook Jade's hand anyway, feeling quite proud of herself when she hardly even grimaced. Jade smiled at her and then promptly raced off into the forest, leaving Rose standing speechless.

“Well,” she sighed after a moment, “so much for that idea.” She washed her hands and returned to bed.

 

~

 

The entire camp was woken less than an hour later as something huge crashed into camp, screeching wildly. She heard Jake shout something like “Tally Ho!” as she quickly slipped into her shoes. The scene before her when she poked her head out of her tent was... well, comical. Everyone was standing around in various states of undress staring at a huge crab-like lusii. Atop which was seated Jade, looking for all the world like she belonged there. She spotted Rose immediately and waved her over enthusiastically.

“Hello, Jade. It's good to see you again.”

Jade laughed and hopped down off her crab-mount. The creature maked an annoyed clicking sound, but Jade whirled around and bopped it.

“Shoosh!” she admonished, and the creature seemed to settle.

The team was stunned, and Rose couldn't quite stifle a giggle as she surveyed them. Aradia looked particularly hilarious, her hair untamed curly hair sticking up in every direction. They were all eying Jade with a mix of curiosity and confusion. Despite being the center of attention, the girl from the jungle seemed unperturbed. She turned to them all and waved. “Hello!” She pointed to herself proudly. “Jade!” She then pointed at Aradia, who happened to be nearest to her. Aradia seemed to pick up Jade's intent, and stated her name. Jade pointed at everyone in turn, wordlessly asking for their names. She nodded after each of them, and smiled.

She pointed at everyone except Rose, because, Rose assumed, she already knew her. She also skipped Jake, and she walked up to him instead.

She tilted her head to look at him and Rose was suddenly jolted as she realized just how similar they looked. It was almost uncanny. Aranea sidled up to her. “You've noticed it too, then, I take it?” Rose whispered to her, and Aranea nodded.

“There's got to be some shared genes, somehow. It's no coincidence that she's here. I'll sit down with Jake later and draw up what he knows of his family tree.” Rose nodded in approval of Aranea's suggestion.

Meanwhile, Jade had shyly extended her hand to Jake. He shook it, and glanced over at Rose uncertainly. She shrugged back at him and walked over.

“Everyone, this is Jade, and she has agreed to help us with our research. In exchange, she's requested that we help her in learning how to speak.” When Jade beamed at Rose, she knew the girl had understood her.

Under Aradia's instruction, they split into two teams. Jake, along with Tavros, Feferi, Sollux, and Horuss worked on studying the new crab species that Jade had brought, while Rose, Aranea, Aradia, Equius remained with Jade to help her learn.

It took them a while to get started, but once they found an acceptable way to help Jade understand, she learned very quickly. It wasn't without it's glitches, of course. Jade had the tendency to growl, and didn't understand the need to sit in chairs. She got frustrated quickly, resorting to throwing things and occasionally storming around and barking. But her progress was admirable and as dinner approached, she could communicate intent, even if it wasn't always grammatically correct. She was an avid learner, and Rose wondered, not for the first time, if she hasn't had some exposure to learning English in the past.

But any inquiries into where she came from were misunderstood. “The jungle,” she replied each time, without hesitation.

Finally after hours of teaching, Jade began to whine, “Rose,” she begged, giving the blond girl huge puppy-dog eyes, “Jade is hungry.” she paused and tacked on an uncertain, “Please?” at the end.

Rose wanted to teach her more, so they could learn more, but she was feeling a little lightheaded from lack of food anyway, so they all agreed to break for dinner. Equius took on the hilarious role of attempting to teach Jade proper table manners,

“No no, Jade,” he chided for what had to be at least the fifth time, “Use your utensils not your hands. It is quite unacceptable!” Rose had the suspicion that Jade was doing it on purpose, just to make everyone laugh.

After dinner, Jade resisted learning anymore, but she promised to return the next morning. There was a glint in her green eyes that made Rose wonder what kind of lusii she'd be bringing with her. She bid everyone a cheerful goodnight and raced off into the jungle, leaving everyone staring after her, much as Rose had been earlier that day.

“So, sorry but I just have to ask.” Feferi quipped from the back of the group, “Why does she have dog ears?” They all spent the rest of the evening coming up with increasingly more and more ridiculous scenarios.

When Rose settled into bed that night, she felt tired, but satisfied. Jade was... something else. But despite her cheery, easy-going manner, there was such a tangled mystery surrounding her. Who was she really? How did she get to this strange, remote island and how long had she been living here on her own? Was she on her own? The thought made Rose sit up in bed. What if there was a whole tribe of wild jungle dog-people?

A sudden bark outside her tent startled her out of her thoughts. She grabbed a robe and opened the flap of her tent. Jade was sitting right outside, grinning. “Rose,” she whispered, “Come with Jade!”

“Some of us do need sleep, you know.” Rose chided, even as she was pulling on her shoes. But Jade only smiled at her. Instead of running into the jungle expecting Rose to follow, Jade stood and carefully took Rose's hand.

Rose blushed, but quickly chastised herself. It was a purely innocent gesture, as Jade had no idea of the implications that hand-holding had in modern culture.

Jade led her into the thicket of the jungle. It was pitch black and disorienting, and Rose was amazed that Jade seemed to know exactly where she was going. They went deeper and deeper into the depths of the forest and Rose began to feel uneasy. She was just about to suggest to Jade that maybe they continue this venture in the daylight, when they emerged into a clearing. A large white dome rested in the middle and though it was covered in foliage, Rose recognized it immediately. It was the top spire of one of the towers at Mr. Harley's house. There was another, identical and still intact, situated at the top of the huge mansion. This one must have broken off and rolled down to rest here many years ago.  
Still holding Rose's hand, Jade led her inside the dome. Rose gasped. It was like a large living room- complete with an old fashioned television.

There were bookshelves, crammed with books and a table, which was also piled high with books and papers. There was a well worn sofa in the middle of the room, which faced the television. And most surprising of all was the electric lamp, that was on and currently casting the room with a warm yellow glow.

“What? Jade, where did all of this come from?” Rose tried to keep the majority of the surprise out of her voice, but she suspected she failed. Jade shrugged and pointed in the direction they had come from, towards camp and the Harley house. She then picked a book up off the table and sat down on the couch. Waving her hand, she motioned Rose over.

Inside the book were photographs of a older man with an impressive mustache. He was outfitted in safari clothes, as he posed in front of crumbling temples and towering pyramids. Page after page displayed the same man, performing various feats of bravery, and in one blurry shot, swinging from a jungle vine, When Jade turned to the last page, the pieces started to fall into place. The same man was shown, much older now, and this time he was with a small girl who looked about two or three. There was no mistaking her.

“Jade,” the girl beside her said, pointing at the picture and confirming Rose's suspicions. She moved her finger to point at the older man. “Grandpa.” Her voice was sadder, and quiet. She sighed.

Rose couldn't stifle her curiosity. “So that makes you Jade Harley, then.” Jade nodded. “Do you have anyone else? Any siblings or parents?”

Jade brightened and grinned at Rose. She leaped up and ran out the door, calling a name Rose couldn't quite hear. Before she had time to process who else might be living on the island, Jade came trotting back inside followed by a huge white dog.

“This,” Jade presented proudly, “is Bec!” She hugged the dog, who's tail immediately began wagging. “He is Jade's... um, brother?” she looked at Rose for confirmation.

“Jade, I don't think a dog can be your brother.” Rose stated gently, but Jade shook her head.

“Bec says he's Jade's brother. We are family. Bec taught Jade how to live in the jungle after Grandpa was gone.” she hugged the dog tighter and he barked. Jake barked back and then turned to Rose. “He likes you. Jade does too! We watched everyone in the jungle and we liked you best.”

Suddenly Jade was up off the floor and crowding Rose's personal space. “You smell good.”

'Aha, um, Jade.” Rose started, trying to remove the girl currently burying her face into Rose's hair. “Remember what Equius was teaching you about manners? It's, ah, not really polite to smell people.”

Pouting, Jade sat back. Before she could even think of using her puppy-dog eyes, Rose stood up.

“How does this work?” She asked, pointing to the lamp. Jade walked over to a small white box, which the lamp and television were plugged into.

She held it out for Rose to look at. The atomic symbol was stamped around four of the sides.

“Can I borrow this sometime, Jade?”

“Yes,” Jade replied immediately, “Trade?”

Rose frowned, “Trade for what?”

Jade grinned and pointed to the Squiddle still attached to her belt.

“You want another Squiddle?” Rose asked, and Jade nodded enthusiastically. “Okay, deal.” Thankfully Jade didn't require another spit-shake and Rose moved on to look at the other things throughout the room. The books appeared to be mostly notes and old journals from Jade's grandpa- Mr. Harley. The television, though it was plugged in, displayed only static. There was a large pile of colorful blankets and pillows haphazardly leaning against the wall and Rose assumed that must be Jade's bed. There were flowers and shells decorating the entire room. After she looked her fill, Rose rejoined Jade on the couch.

“Jade, what happened to your Grandpa? Why is it only you and Bec?”

A strange, sad look settled onto Jade's face. “When Jade was,” she motioned her hand low to the ground.

“Small,” Rose supplied and Jade nodded.

“When Jade was small, Grandpa taught her a lot of things. One day he hurt here.” she pointed to her heart. “He fell and didn't get up. Jade and Bec were sad.”

“Ah,” Rose said, and patted Jade's shoulder. “Probably some form of heart failure, then. It happens sometimes to people who are old. I'm very sorry, Jade.”

The girl sniffed once and shrugged. “Jade is happy with Bec. Then, people came and Jade watched and listened. Jade liked them. Then Rose came and Jade is happy because Rose is nice.”

“Well, Rose thinks Jade is nice too.” And at that comment, Jade was back to her usual smiling self.

Soon after, Jade led Rose back into camp and promised again to visit in the morning. Rose had been tired before, and now she sunk gratefully into her bed, exhausted.

 

~

 

Jade was back as promised the next morning, leading one of the mysterious centaur-like creatures. It wasn't quite humanoid, but it was a strange chimera and it unsettled Rose. The rest of the group however, was ecstatic. Jade also brought the white box that served as a power supply, and she sat with Rose as Sollux and Horuss looked it over. Horuss managed to pry the lid open and he and Sollux spent a solid half an hour running tests.

“I'm not completely thure, Rothe, but it'th definitely thome kind of power thorce. I've never theen tech like thith before and that'th thaying thomthing. There'th a uranium core, tho it'th definitely nuclear.”

“It's got a uranium core?” Aradia came over to join them. “That actually doesn't surprise me. When Jake and I first got here, we did a bunch of soil tests, and there is actually a slightly higher concentration of uranium here than you would normally find in nature. It's not enough to be toxic, of course, but it did peak our interest.”

“Long term exposure can cause gene mutation,” Rose mused aloud, “perhaps that's the reason the species here are so strange.”

Aradia nodded. “We thought so too, but until now we've never had any evidence of a uranium concentrate. It's entirely possible that Mr. Harleyencountered a vein and mined some samples for his own study.”

“That might explain the heart failure too.”Rose added.

“Mr. Harley died of heart failure? How do you know that?” Aradia asked and Rose realized she had yet divulge what she had learned of Jade's heritage.

“Would you mind asking Jake over first? I'd prefer to only explain it once.” Aradia quickly brought him over so Rose could explain.

“Last night, Jade took me to her home in the jungle. She showed me a photo album featuring Mr. Harley on his various world adventures. The last picture, however, showed him with a child. Jade claims it's her in the picture, and I cannot contest it, for the resemblance is striking. She also claims that he was her grandfather and she lived with him until he passed away from what I assume to be heart failure, from her descriptions.”

“Wait a moment,” Jake said slowly, “But Mr. Harley's sister was my grandmother. So that would mean...” he turned to Jade, who was sitting and watching the proceedings with interest. “That would mean we're family!” He started laughing and abruptly hugged Jade. “We're cousins!” Jade at least understood the word family, and she picked up on Jake's meaning quickly.

“Cousins!” she chanted, as they hugged each other and hopped around the room.

“Well second cousins, actually,” Rose remarked, but it went unheard.

Jake and Jade's ruckus brought the rest of the group, and Rose found herself having to explain her story again, despite her earlier efforts to avoid doing so. However, the good mood was infectious and Rose found herself laughing along with everyone else- especially after Jade got so excited that she licked Jake's face. He turned beet red, but quickly retaliated by blowing a raspberry at her. Rose wondered why she hadn't seen the obvious relations between them before.

Jake spent the rest of the day with Jade, teaching her English and other things that he deemed important. Her speech improved leaps and bounds, and she proved surprisingly adept at marksmanship, once Jake showed her how to operate a rifle.

Rose's energy was completely spent by the end of the day, from running back and forth between working with the lusii and Jade wanting to show her every new thing she learned. Jade had said good night to the team retreated to the jungle about an hour ago, but like the previous night, she showed up again at Rose's tent.

“Come with me,” she said, and Rose sighed, resigned but willing. Jade took her hand and they entered the jungle. This time, Jade took her to the northernmost tip of the island. The water around them seemed endless as each waved glittered and crashed on the shore. There was no beach, and they instead stood high up on the rocks overlooking the sea. The moon was low and hung fat and full in the sky. Rose was overcome at the sight and Jade laughed and ran out to the very edge of the rocks. She spread her arms out wide and suddenly let forth a joyous howl.

Despite the warmth of the early summer night, Rose shivered, feeling something strange beginning to unfold itself in the pit of her stomach.

 

~

 

Jade woke her early the next morning, by coming into her tent and jumping on the bed.

“Don't you ever sleep?” Rose asked the wild girl groggily. “Where do you get all this energy? All right, all right I'm getting up,” she grumbled as

Jade let out a bark. She made her wait outside as she changed, even though Jade couldn't understand why.

“Alright,” she mock-sighed, “what adventurers do you have planned this morning for us? At least the sun is up this time.” Jade took her hand and led her, not into the jungle, as she expected, but around to Mr. Harley's mansion.

The light from the morning sun shone directly on it and turned its normally white exterior into a bright yellow. It looked like it had been pulled directly out of a golden dream. Jade let go of Rose's hand, and made her way carefully over the pumpkin vines that threatened to swallow the house. The front entrance had been cleared, because, as Aranea had told Rose, Jake had originally intended to stay in the house while working on the project. But it proved to be too overgrown and structurally unsound, so he set up the campsite instead.

Now, Jade headed for the open entrance, the doors long rotted away. She smoothed her hand over the surface of the house with reverence. Rose approached her slowly, and though she had a hundred questions, she wasn't quite sure how to ask any of them. Before she could decide what to do, Jade slipped into the house and Rose followed her without a thought.

She could see where Jake had begun to clear away some of the fauna and debris, but for the most part, the house remained wild. A fine, soft layer of grass became the new carpet, and the walls were textured with layers of ivy. It was so unlike anything that she had ever seen before that she hesitated to to even classify it as beautiful.

Jade ignored the first floor of the house entirely and headed straight for a swirling, iron-wrought spiral staircase. They climbed the stairs slowly, and came up to a large, sunlight room. the fauna here was less wild, and there was evidence that Jake had been up here too, as most of the pumpkin vines were hacked away.

Rose took a deep breath and surveyed the house around her. Dust motes wavered in the bars of sunlight that streamed in, and the forest teemedgreen right outside the windows. For the first time in quite possibly years, Rose felt completely peaceful.

Jade seemed to pick up on her mood because she turned around and smiled brilliantly, her eyes as bright and green as the jungle around them.

There was another staircase, spiraling up like the one in the main hall. Jade began climbing it without a thought for the integrity of the metal after so many years. But the steps held, and so Rose followed her up.

The stairs seemed to go on forever and Rose thought her legs might collapse under her. But finally, they emerged out. They were standing in a large, circular room at the very top of the house. Rose realized that this was one of the two towers she could see from the outside. The remaining tower, the twin of which had broken off and Jade now called home.

With the same reverence that she had displayed earlier, Jade ran her hands over everything and stopped at the remains of what looked like it had been a grand, four poster bed.

“This was my room,” she said. “This was my house. When Grandpa died, Bec took me to the jungle and taught me to live. I wanted to come back but I was afraid.” Her normally cheerful voice was sad as she ran a hand over a faded, peeling poster. “But then I met you Rose, and Jake. And I'm so happy. And not afraid to come back.”

Rose smiled, “Well I can't promise I'll climb all those stairs as fast as you can, but whenever you want to come back, I'll be glad to accompany you.”

Jade crossed the room and hugged Rose tightly. “Thank you.”

 

~

 

Something about that morning brought them closer together, and Jade decided they were now _best friends_ and whenever Rose wasn't directly working or sleeping, she would spend every moment with her. It overwhelmed Rose, who had never had a best friend before, or even many friends at all. She tried to explain this to Jade, who couldn't seem to wrap her mind around it.

“But Rose,” she insisted, “You're amazing and so smart! I think everyone would want to be friends with you!”

Rose laughed, something she had been doing more of lately. “Jade, when I was younger, I didn't want to be friends with anyone. I thought friendships to be trivial and frivolous wastes of time.”

Jade looked stricken, “You don't think that about me, do you?”

“No Jade, of course not. I only mean to show how I've never experienced a friendship like this before.”

“Oh,” Jade settled, “Well, that's good then. I don't know what I'd do if you didn't want to be friends anymore.”

It was a testament to her intelligence that she even understood the words Rose was using, after only having formal English lessons for just under two weeks. Jade had been learning everything they could teach her. As soon as she had a strong grasp on the English language, she started asking questions. They had been teaching her history, math and science and she soaked all of it up. She spent most days with the team, listening in on their observations and discoveries, and weighing in where she could.

She knew a lot about the lusii, and tried to coax as many into the camp as she could. Within those first two weeks, the team had more than enough to work with.

And every day, it seemed like she had something new to share with Rose. They spent early mornings wandering the beach, or seeing different parts of the jungle. Jade wanted to take her out for adventures at night, but after Rose almost fell asleep while working the next day, she convinced Jade that the nightly romps had to end. Instead Jade now spent her nights listening to Rose read aloud. She was especially enjoying _Harry Potter_.

Rose couldn't explain what she was feeling. Jade made her feel younger and freer. She was just so... full of life. She made Rose forget the person she tried to be at home. The girl living in her mother's shadow, constantly trying to up the game, to be better. Instead she just enjoyed being herself, no expectations.

As summer approached, the days got longer and the temperature rose. Some nights were so humid, that everyone slept with their tents wide open to create air flow.

One such night, the heat made Jade irritable and cranky. “Why can't we just go sleep on the beach, Rose? It's so nice and cool and breezy. Ugh.”

She flopped onto Rose's bed, trying to lift her hair off her neck. “I'm all sticky!” she complained.

Rose sighed and stood up. Without another word, she grabbed a comb and forced Jade sit on the floor.

“Rose what are you doing?”

“Shush,” Rose chided, taking a leaf out of Jade's own book. “It's something I should have addressed a long time ago.” She then picked up the matted tangle of Jade's hair, and set to work.

There was a lot of complaining at first, but whenever Rose asked, “Am I really hurting you that much?” Jade's protests stopped. And the more tangles she worked out, the quieter Jade became. By the time Rose finished, the girl was all but asleep on the floor.

“Nooo,” she whined softly, “don't stop this is wonderful.”

Smiling, Rose continued to comb her hair, switching to use her fingers instead. They stayed like that for a while, before Rose blushed and realized exactly what she was doing. She quickly braided Jade's hair and stood up.

“Well, I believe that's all for tonight. You should be feeling a lot better now with that mop of hair under control.” Her words came out in a rush.

Jade stood and tilted her head to the side sleepily. “Rose? What's wrong?”

“Oh nothing, nothing,” Rose assured her. “I'm just a little tired, and I'd like to get some sleep. I'll see you tomorrow Jade.”

“M'kay.” Jade gave her a sleepy smile and then hugged her, smushing her face into Rose's neck. “You're the best Rose.”

Rose flushed and shepherded Jade out of her tent, which she closed up, despite the heat. She felt silly and strange and not sure about anything.

Jade was her friend, and she just wasn't used to having friends, that's all it was. And yeah, Jade was a little more affectionate than the average person, but she had grown up almost completely devoid of human contact. It was only natural.  
Whatever she was feeling was well within the bounds of normalcy. Jade was just so different from anyone else and she was really very intelligent.

And of course Rose would have to be blind not to notice that she was attractive, with miles of that thick black hair and tiny freckles and those expressive green eyes, made even larger behind her glasses. She was all muscle and tanned skin and it didn't mean anything that Rose thought she was attractive. It didn't mean she was attracted to her. Even though there was maybe a little voice in the back of her head telling her that she was.

“This is ridiculous.” she said out loud to no one, and promptly got herself ready for bed.

 

~

 

Jade was no where to be seen the next morning, and Rose tried to ignore the small feeling of disappointment. She had a lot of work to catch up on, and she'd been meaning to compare notes with Aranea for a couple days now. She holed herself up and worked vigilantly, trying desperately to focus. It worked after a while, because she was actually startled when Feferi poked her head into Rose's tent sometime that afternoon.

“Ro~ose!” she sing-songed. “There is someone here to see yoooou!” and then she disappeared with a giggle. Rose stretched and walked outside, blinking against the sunlight. Jade was standing nearby with a huge grin and her hands behind her back. Her hair had come undone from the braid Rose put it in the previous night, but it now fell around her in soft waves.

She half walked, half skipped up to Rose and then without a word, presented her with the biggest, most beautiful bouquet of flowers Rose had ever seen. “Feferi told me that you get flowers for people you like! So since I like you I wanted you to know!”

Rose looked over at Feferi, who only shrugged innocently. She turned back to Jade, with the intent of explaining that yes, it's correct that you get flowers for people you like, but only people you like in a certain way. However, Jade looked so earnest and pleased with herself that Rose couldn't bring herself to contest it.

“Thank you so much, Jade, they're beautiful.”

“Do you really like them?” she exclaimed, bouncing on her feet. “Oh I'm so glad. You're my best friend, Rose and I want you to know it!”

Rose smiled, but her heart sank in a funny way. “It's a wonderful gift. I'll just go put them in some water so they last longer.”

However, any disappointment she initially felt faded within minutes of being again in Jade's company. It was impossible not to be happy around her when she was bouncing all over the place, finding beauty and intrigue in everything around her.

 

~

 

There was nothing normal or routine about the job to begin with, but adding Jade into the mixture took things to a whole new level. And the more she learned about the world around her each day, the more she had questions.

“But Rose,” she asked one night, as the team lounged around after dinner. “If we've never been there, how can we know that space goes on forever?”

Rose held back a sigh. Jade was starting to ask about things that pushed the boundaries of her knowledge. “There's a whole branch of study called Astrophysics that tries to answer those types of questions. They've got mathematical equations and postulates to try to estimate how large space really is.”

Jade thought of this for a moment. “Can you teach them to me? I'd like to understand better.”

This time Rose couldn't hold back the sigh, but she smiled. “Jade, there are limits to my knowledge. I've never had an interest in Astrophysics before, and I've afraid I don't know anymore about it than what I've just told you.”

Jade scoffed. “Rose, you know everything! And why wouldn't you want to learn about it? Space is so interesting!” She leaned back and spread her arms wide. “I wish I could touch it, somehow! Sometimes I feel like I can, but I don't remember how.” Rose laughed and Jade sat up quickly. “What, you don't believe me? I guess it does sound a little silly.”

“No Jade,” Rose said after a moment, “If anyone could find a way, it would be you. I don't think it's silly at all.”

Jade flopped back with a happy sigh, curling herself closer to Rose. “See, that's why you're the best. You believe in me.” She yawned widely and closed her eyes. They sat in comfortable silence for a while before Jade roused herself and stretched. “Let's go on more adventurers tomorrow, okay Rose?”

“As long as you don't make me swing from any pumpkin vines, I'll be glad to accompany you.”

Jade laughed sleepily before she left for the night.

Aradia came over to Rose shortly after. “So we've moved onto Astrophysics, now?” she asked with a quirk of an eyebrow.

“I'm beginning to suspect she's going to want to learn more than any of us can teach her. She's a genius, in the truest sense of the word. She picked up English in about a week! I know she had been taught the basics when she was young, but the speed in which she picks everything else up is unprecedented.”

Next to her, Aradia nodded. “Maybe Aranea's got some textbooks we can use. She only brought half a library with her.” she giggled.

“Actually,” Rose said, “That gives me an idea.”

 

~

 

When Jade arrived the next morning, she was ecstatic when Rose said she had a surprise for her.

“Is it more Squiddles?” she bounced. “Because I know you already made me 4 of them, but I want more! They're just so cute!!”

Rose smiled, “No, it's not a Squiddle. It's something a little... non-traditional. But I assure you, if you have a little patience, you'll be very pleased.”

Jade was perplexed, but intrigued and she followed Rose without question into her tent. Rose sat Jade down on the bed, and handed her the _Harry Potter_ book.

“You're going to read to me? That's the surprise?”

“No Jade, this time, you are going to read to me.”

Jade pouted. “But it's so much better when you do it. You make the best voices!”

Rose sat down on the bed next to Jade. “I know it will be a little difficult, but you're very intelligent. I know you'll figure it out. You've already learned the alphabet, so it's only a matter of putting the letters together. And also, as luck would have it, Aranea has brought a few scientific books with her. When you're ready, she has _Vegetation of the Pacific Islands_ , and also _An Introduction to DNA Sequencing_. I believe there may have also been a chemistry text or two.

The instant Rose mentioned scientific books, Jade brightened and turned to the first page of _Harry Potter_. “Okay, I'll do my best!” She promised, and together they pointed to the first words on the top of the page.

“Say it with me, alright, and try to pronounce it just as I do.” Jade nodded enthusiastically. “Chapter One, The Boy Who Lived...”

 

~

 

Progress was slow. Jade was eager, sometimes excessively so. She wanted to skip to the parts in the story she knew she liked, and had little regard for punctuation. “I just don't understand how that tiny little dot can mean the whole sentence is over!” she complained. “It should be a line, or a big black box! I can hardly see it, how should I know when to stop?”

It took them an hour just to get through the first chapter, but by the middle of the second, Jade was reading the words on her own. And she didn't fail to interject her own humor either. In addition to making voices for the characters, she also changed her mannerisms. Her stuffy impression of Aunt Petunia had Rose laughing to the point of tears. When she finally caught her breath, she noticed Jade was looking at her funny, chewing on her bottom lip.

“What's wrong? Do I have something on my face.” She wiped her eyes, hoping there weren't mascara trails from her tears.

Jade actually blushed. “No it's just, I've never seen you laugh like that before. It makes me really happy that I can make you laugh.”

“Jade,” Rose said, feeling almost lightheaded from laughing so much, “No one makes me laugh like you do. You're really something special.”

The dark haired girl looked away as she flushed up to her ears, but she practically glowed with the praise. Rose's stomach did that strange little flop again. She started to shove the feeling away, but instead stopped. It felt nice, to know she'd made Jade happy, like the girl had just said about her.

Jade looked up and met her eyes and a beat of _something_ passed between them. All of a sudden, Rose's heart was pounding loudly in her ears.

“What do you say we take a break and have lunch?” she said quickly, breaking the moment. “I bet we could take some sandwiches down to the beach and have a picnic?”

Jade bit her bottom lip again, looking confused but she whooped at the mention of a picnic. “Yes yes yes!! Rose c'mon let's go now!” She took Rose's hand, and practically dragged her out of the tent.

Picnics were one of Jade's favorite things. As they ate lunch on the beach that day, Rose asked her why.

Jade thought for a moment before replying. “I don't really know! I mean, I guess I had picnics with myself all the time, since I never eat at home. But it's different when I have someone to share it with! It feels like I'm doing something special when I'm with you.” Before Rose had a chance to process what she had just learned, Jade jumped up. “Okay it's too hot, let go swimming!” and with that, she raced into the ocean, fully dressed.

Smiling, Rose watched her splash around, and was struck again by that feeling. Like something strange was unfolding itself inside of her.

However, she had no more time to think as Jade began spraying water at her. “Oh it's on, Harley!” she shouted.

The returned to camp an hour later, soggy and grinning. Rose made Jade change out of her usual, ripped up junglegirl dress and into some shorts and a tee-shirt. Jade, predictably, complained the entire time. “But Rooooose, I always go swimming in my dress! I don't mind when it's wet.”

“Yes, but if you're going to be sitting on my bed practicing your reading, which I might add, you are, then you'll have to be dry. And these will have to come off too.” She plucked the makeshift dog ear headband off Jade's head, and the girl yowled.

“Rose noooo!”

But Rose only crossed her arms firmly. “Jade, you can have them back when they're dry. In the meantime, sit and read. I'll brush your hair.”

“Oh!” Jade exclaimed, “Why didn't you say so?” She promptly plunked herself down on Rose's bed and started to read aloud.

 

~

 

Their reading sessions continued on for four more days, before Jade really got the hang of it. And despite it being her slowest progress yet, she still learned remarkably fast. With each passing day, her brilliance grew more and more evident. But despite her growing knowledge, she still remained completely herself.

“C'mon, Rose lets go!” Laughing, Jade ran through the jungle. Rose, to her surprise, was almost keeping up. She had hoped, in coming to this island and working on this project, that she would grow and find something of her own to work on. She never expected she would grow into herself. But Jade seemed to bring out the best in her. Whatever else she may have felt about the girl, that much couldn't be denied.

Jade started to slow, and eventually came to a stop. Rose caught up with her and then stopped, panting. After catching her breath, she looked up to take in her surroundings.

There was less light here, and the tops of the massive trees seemed miles away. The undergrowth faded out and left only a thick covering of soft, light green grass. The sun filtered through in striking spotlight beams, rich with dust and pollen. It was almost completely silent.

Rose slowly walked over to one of the larger circles and stood in the center, closing her eyes and lifting her face up to feel the sun. Jade joined her a moment later and they stood together, quiet and unmoving.

“I wish we could stay like this forever,” Jade whispered after a moment, and Rose's heart suddenly grew heavy.

“I do too, but you know I'll only be here for about another week. The project will continue on until the end of the month, but I only signed on to consult for a bit.”

Jade's jaw dropped. “You're leaving? But Rose...” she trailed off, at once for loss of words. She looked down at her feet, and the silence that followed didn't feel peaceful to Rose anymore.

“I know it's-” she started, but Jade looked up suddenly, her green eyes bright and determined.

“If you've only got a week left, then I am going to make sure it's the best week ever!”

“Jade, you really don't have to-” but Jade cut her off again, this time with a tight hug.

“You're my best friend, Rose. You've done so much for me. Now I want to do something for you.”

 

~

 

They spent a little more time deep in the heart of the jungle before Jade led Rose back to the camp. The somber mood she had displayed earlier seemed to have vanished entirely. She decided to go diving with Feferi, as Rose had some paperwork to catch up on.

The hours passed quickly as Rose immersed herself in her work, and though she heard Jade and Feferi's giggling return, she was concentrating too hard to acknowledge it. She copied all her notes into formal reports, and was just finishing up cross-referencing one of Aranea's papers when

Feferi poked her head into Rose's tent.

“Dinner's ready when you are, Rose!” Startled, Rose looked up to see it was almost dark outside. She closed up her work and stretched, feeling accomplished. The faster she could wrap up her reports, the more time she could spend with Jade.

When she stepped out into the campsite, however, it was empty.

“Hello?” she called, confused. They didn't always eat together, but there were usually at least two or three people hanging out around the main table. And she could smell sausages too. All of a sudden, Jade appeared, grinning. She took Rose by the hand and led her over to the main table. She still hadn't said a word, and Rose was apprehensive.

“What are you planning, Jade? I know that look.” But the girl remained silent. She flounced out of sight for a moment and quickly returned with two plates of sausages. Or at least, Rose assumed they must have been sausages at one point. However, now they appeared to be more like charcoal logs.

“I made you dinner!” Jade announced proudly, breaking her silence. “Equius helped me! He told me they were a little overcooked but I know you can get sick if you eat raw meat, so I made sure to cook them extra!”

Rose took a tentative bite, and found that once she got past the burnt exterior, it really wasn't too bad. “Thank you Jade, they're delicious. You did a great job.” Jade cheered and dug into her own plate with vigor, apparently not noticing the ever-present charcoal taste.

“Oh wait!” she exclaimed after a moment, “I forgot something.” She hurried out of view again, and returned with a huge bowl of cut fruit. “I know it's probably more than we can eat, but it's just so much fun to chop up fruit!” The chunks were uneven, and sized much smaller than normally found in a fruit salad, but Rose could see the obvious effort that Jade had put into it. And after the burnt sausages the fruit was quite refreshing.

Jade insisted on taking care of the dishes, and afterward, read _Harry Potter_ to Rose with her funniest voices and expressions. They were both in hysterics after only one chapter, and Jade was forced to stop because they were laughing too hard.

Jade bounced backwards on Rose's bed as they calmed down. “Okay, I want one of these.” she sighed contentedly and began playing with her Squiddle. “They are just so comfortable! I know I had one when I was little, because I remember jumping up and down on it, and Grandpa yelling at me.”

Talking about her grandfather usually made Jade sad, so Rose quickly added, “When I was little, I had a waterbed. It's like a mattress but filled with water instead.”

“Oooh,” Jade said softly, her attention now solely focused on Rose.

“My mother gave it to me when I was 7, after I won my first literary award in school. She claimed that I was almost an adult now, who deserved adult things. I was angry and didn't want to be an adult. So, I decided to prove that I was still a kid, and I jumped on it until it exploded.” Jade burst out laughing and Rose hid a smile behind her hand, “My mother was furious, but she didn't punish me. She just bought me a larger, regular mattress and I was angry about that too, but it was so comfortable that I couldn't really complain.”

“Why don't you get along with you mom?” Jade's directness was refreshing. And while Rose normally appreciated it, this was a hard question.

“I'm not really sure. My mother... has a very distinct personality and a way of doing things that I don't always agree with. She's quite famous, did I ever tell you?” Jade shook her head. “Well, she was already a well known psychologist, but she published a series of books that became best sellers. All of this was before I was born, so I never knew her any other way. She was always larger than life, and I thought that I had to be just like her to get her to love me. And I know she cared about me in her own way, but she just didn't know how to show it.” Rose sighed. “It's only in the last few years that I've realized that I need to follow my own path instead of living in her shadow. That's why I came here.”

Jade was silent for a moment, absorbing everything. “I think you're amazing and wonderful. You're so patient and intelligent, and if your mom can't see that, I guess I can understand why you wouldn't get along. And I'm glad you came, because otherwise I would have never met you, and I can't even imagine life any other way now.” She met Rose's gaze and smiled. “You're the best thing that ever happened to me.”

Rose felt her cheeks heat up and her and Jade both broke their gaze at the same time.

“I'm gonna... Well. Um, I'll see you tomorrow, Rose.” She stood to leave and Rose grabbed her wrist.

“Wait, Jade. I just.” Rose took a deep breath and ignored her pounding heart. “Thank you very much for dinner. It's truly been a wonderful evening.”

Jade smiled shyly and ducked quickly out of the tent. Rose stood for a moment more, before sitting down on her bed and sinking her face into her hands.

“I've never felt like this before. You crazy jungle woman, what have you done to me?” she whispered. “Everything you does makes me like you more,” she sighed. “You're sweet and funny and... beautiful. And I like to be with you and spend time with you, but what does that mean? Does it have to mean anything?”

With a groan, Rose flopped into bed and resigned herself to a difficult night.

 

~

 

The next day found her wishing she had pushed her thoughts away and actually gotten some sleep, because she was currently standing thirty feet up in a tree, as Jade attempted to teach her how to travel via pumpkin vine.

“Jade, I really don't think this is such a good idea...” she said, as Jade handed her a thick, ropey vine.

“You'll be fine, really! And I promise I'll catch you if anything goes wrong!”

“Somehow, I'm not really reassured! You do realize that you've had years of practice right, and I haven't even been in a gym class since highschool-ahhh!” Her sentence ended in a scream as Jade pushed her out of the tree and into the open jungle. She shut her eyes before realizing that was a Very Bad Idea. All at once, another pumpkin vine appeared in front of her and she felt her world fall away as she reached out and grabbed it, letting her momentum do its job. Jade was whooping with joy somewhere nearby as Rose grabbed another vine, narrowly avoiding a tree. And then suddenly her grip was slipping and she was panicking and falling and where was Jade! But before she could even call the girl's name, Jade was suddenly there, holding Rose tightly around her waist.

“Okay, I think I've had quite enough now, thank you!” Rose yelled and squeezed her eyes shut. Jade laughed and they were suspended in the air for a moment longer, before Rose was gently set on solid ground.

“Of all the heathen, ungraceful things...” Rose started, and Jade's face fell. “...I have to admit, it was actually pretty fun.” Jade cracked up. “Just don't expect me to do it again any time soon!” She laid down on the forest floor, uncaring of the dirt and just feeling glad to know there was ground underneath her. Jade joined her, and they spent awhile finding shapes in the leafy canopy above them.

They returned back to camp later that day covered in leaves and sticks. Rose caught a glimpse of herself in her mirror and she was startled. The girl looking back had wind tossed hair, and her cheeks were pink from sunburn. There was a huge smudge of dirt across her left cheek and a leaf stuck out of her hair at a jaunty angle. She smiled at herself, thinking of how far she had come from the stuffy, unsure girl she had been when she first arrived on the island almost two months ago.

Her and Jade spent the evening relaxing in camp. Jade wanted to learn how to braid her hair, and she attacked Rose's “in the name of research!”. It was too short for traditional braids, but that didn't stop the determined girl from trying. Once she had affixed Rose's hair with a multitude of tiny braids and flowers, she went in search of other victims. By the time she was done, Aradia, Feferi and Horuss all had similar braids and flowers and Jake, though he resisted at first, was sporting a rather large orange hibiscus.

'I'm going to miss this,' Rose thought suddenly, watching Jade and Feferi decorate Tavros's mohawk. Jade looked up at that moment, and caught Rose's eye. She smiled sweetly, and Rose's stomach did a somersault as the meaning of her feelings really started to fall into place. 'You think I'm the best thing to happen to you,' she thought, as she returned Jade's smile, 'but I think it's really the other way around.'

 

~

 

Rose woke the next morning as usual, but Jade had yet to arrive. She ate breakfast, and finished up a few things with Aranea. She then took her reports to Jake and Aradia, and they spent a good hour reviewing everything.

“Rose, we can't thank you enough.” Aradia said. “Your help here has been invaluable. And once we can publish all our papers, I'm sure we'll be granted enough money to fund further studies. Maybe it'll happen soon enough that we can get a station down here permanently.”

“I don't want to sound intentionally modest, but really, it was nothing. I'm glad that my popularity will finally come to some use. And I honestly had a wonderful time. I'd stay longer than a few more days if I could. I'm not one for flowery declarations, but you are amazing people. It's been an honor to work with you all.”

“Maybe it doesn't have to end here.” Jake added, and the two girls looked at him. “Well, if we receive more funding, there's no reason Ms. Lalonde couldn't come consult for us again, right?”

Aradia nodded. “You're always welcome here, Rose. You've been a wonderful addition to our team”

Rose felt proud and elated, and more than a little sad. “Well, don't write me off just yet. I've still got a couple days left.”  
Jade arrived about an hour later and everyone ate lunch together. Afterwards she led Rose into the jungle, claiming she had a surprise for her.

They arrived at Jade's home, and played with Bec for a little while before Jade went into the house, and came out with something wrapped up tightly in a blanket.

“Let's go to the west beach!” she suggested, without mentioning the bundle in her arms at all. Rose had to admit, her curiosity was piqued.

Bec came along too, and when they got to the beach, he and Jade ran around for a while, barking and rolling around in the sand. Rose watched them and laughed and realized that despite the turmoil of emotion she felt inside, she really was happy.

The sun began to set over the ocean and the sky was streaked with brilliant shades of neon pink and orange. Jade finally joined Rose and they sat together in silence, watching the colors in the sky. Abruptly and without ceremony, Jade handed Rose the blanket wrapped bundle.

“I... I'm not sure if you'll like it,” Jade started, and bit her bottom lip. “It's not anything special, but... well, you'll see.”  
Rose carefully undid the knots and unwrapped the package. Inside, was a small patchwork rabbit.

“I made it myself,” Jade said in a rush, “and I tried to pick one color but I liked them all and I thought it would look good at the time, but I'm sure you must think it's silly.”

“You... made this?” Rose asked.

“Well, yeah, I did. Feferi said it was good idea to give stuffed animals to people who you like but I told her I didn't have any so she said I should make one and it would be even more special but I never made anything before so she had to help me a lot and it didn't-”

“Jade,” Rose interrupted with finality, “I absolutely adore it. It's beautiful, and even more wonderful that you made it because you were thinking of me. I'll treasure it always.” Rose felt the telltale prickle of tears in her eyes, but she blinked them away. “Look, the sky is beautiful, isn't it?”

“Yeah,” Jade said softly. “Feferi said that was a good idea too, to watch the sunset together.”

Rose sighed, “I think Feferi has been putting the wrong idea in your head. When she means someone you like-” she was cut off as Bec bounded out of the ocean and shook water out all over them.

Both girls shrieked and began laughing. Rose forgot all about what she had been telling Jade as the two of them chased Bec down the beach. The first stars were just coming out as they returned to camp, exhausted and covered with sand.

“That dog,” Rose panted, “is a devilbeast!”

The devilbeast in question wagged his tail and suddenly bolted off and disappeared back into the trees.

Jade laughed, “He's a good dog. He was my best friend for a long time, but then I met you and everyone else and now just I don't know.”

“You can have more than one best friend, you know. Maybe Bec can be your best dog friend?”

Jade brightened at the suggestion. “Wow Rose, that's the most awesome idea ever! You're so smart!” She hugged Rose and laughed.

Rose blushed, feeling the now-familiar butterflies in her stomach. “Listen, Jade, I think there's something I need to tell you.” Jade released her and tilted her head.

“Sure, what is it?”

Jade looked so honest and open and Rose panicked. “Just that, well, it was really fun today and thank you for the gift. You did a great job with it and, I guess I'll see you tomorrow?” Rose rushed the end and mentally kicked herself.

Jade looked disappointed for a split second before her expression switched to her more familiar smile. “I'm really glad you like it! And yeah, I guess I will.” She grabbed Rose's hand and squeezed it briefly. “Goodnight Rose.” She bounded into the jungle and disappeared, much like Bec had done only moments ago.

Rose, feeling bereft, started to head back to her tent. Aradia suddenly appeared out of nowhere and steered her towards her own tent. “Okay, it's intervention time.”

“Why Aradia, what's this all about? You weren't spying on me, were you?” Rose demanded, but Aradia ignored her and set about boiling a kettle. She didn't answer any of Rose's questions until she had two mugs of steaming tea in her hands. She gave one to Rose and kept the other for herself. Sitting down on the bed, she patted the spot next to her. “Come sit, and tell me what this is all about.”

“I think you're the one who needs to be enlightening me,” Rose grumbled, but sat down anyway.

“You know exactly what I'm talking about, now. Don't be difficult, Rose”

Rose sighed and let the steam from the mug curl lazily around her face. She hesitated, but knowing Aradia, once she put her mind to something, there was no coming back from it. Either they would tlak about it now, or she'd be there all night.

“Aradia, I... I think I'm... I think I like Jade.”

“Okay,” the other girl replied, “So what's the problem?”

Rose blanched. “Are you being serious? What do you think is the problem?”

“You tell me.”

“Hey, I'm supposed to be the psychologist here.” Rose huffed, but Aradia only shrugged so Rose continued. “It's just that. Well. I've never really liked anyone before, and Jade's a. Well, she's another girl.”

“Oh Rose Lalonde!” Aradia exclaimed. “With all your knowledge, you should know that a girl liking another girl is a perfectly normal thing-”

“I know,” Rose interrupted softly, “But it's different when you're in it. I've never been in love before, and suddenly this... this... wild woman barges into my life and shakes up everything. I always pictured myself going on to get a PHD and having an exclusive psychology practice and living with a hundred cats! I never thought...” she trailed off.

“Listen, you can still do all of those things. But maybe your life will have someone else in it. Maybe it would be a good thing for you to _let_ someone else in.” She patted Rose on the back comfortingly. “I know it's hard for you to talk about this stuff. You're the most emotionally constipated psychologist I've ever met, but I care about you Rose. I'd like to think we're friends, and I want you to be happy. You really should tell Jade how you feel.”

“I don't think-”

“Nope, don't pull that with me. I've gotten to know Jade too, and I am sure that even if she doesn't return your feelings, she'll still be your friend.

You shouldn't worry about ruining your friendship or anything like that.”

Rose sighed, resigned to the fact that Aradia would counter any argument she put up. “You've gotten too good at reading me,” she said with a small smile.

“Hey, we were roommates for two years. I'd like to think I picked up on a thing or two.”

“Well, thanks for being so straight with me.” Aradia giggled and Rose looked at her, confused.

“It's just that you said 'straight' and after what we were just talking about-”

Rose groaned, “You're terrible! Seriously?” Aradia only laughed harder.

“I almost feel like we're back in college again,” she said, once she calmed down. “Not that we ever stayed up too late talking about our crushes.”

“Just don't expect it to happen again any time soon,” Rose said.

Aradia winked at her. “Don't worry, Rose, everything will be ok.”

 

~

 

With only a day and a half left before her departure, Rose spent the next morning packing her things. Jade was once again absent, and Rose tried to ignore the anxiety she felt when she pictured telling the other girl her feelings. It was a few hours after lunch when she finally arrived, looking a little worn out.

“Sorry,” she explained. “Some of the crab lusii were a little worked up today. Bec and I spent the morning rounding them up and trying to calm them down. But it's all under control now!” She turned to Rose. “Want to go to the west beach again?”

“You've just spent the entire morning running around after giant. angry crabs, and you want to go to the beach?” Rose asked incredulously.

Jade only shrugged, “Yeah, why wouldn't I? I like spending time with you!” Rose found she couldn't argue, and so with that, they were off. Aradia winked at her again as they left and Rose shivered, suddenly nervous.

They walked through the jungle for a bit, taking their time to get to the beach. The sun was just beginning to set and turned everything an almost lurid shade of golden green. It was familiar to Rose now, but no less beautiful.

The sand of the west beach stretched long and unbroken in front of them, unlike the east beach which was mostly rocky.

“Race ya to the water!” Jade called and Rose sprang after her. They splashed around at the water's edge for a while, before Jade, inevitably, turned it into a water fight. She laughed, dodging Rose up and down the beach before Rose gave in and tackled her into the sand. Jade yelped and quickly tried to squirm away but Rose was relentless. Until, of course, she realized exactly what position they were in. Jade was warm and soft underneath her and Rose knew she should be nervous right now but everything just felt right and she ignored the shouting in the jungle behind her and instead closed her eyes and leaned down to kiss Jade.

Of course, at that moment, a small herd of crab lusii came crashing out of the jungle with Jake barreling after them at top speed. “That's right, you scoundrels! Run while you can!”

Rose hastily scrambled upright.

“Jake! What's going on!?” Jade called after him, but he had already run back into the jungle, chasing the crabs, apparently without seeing them.

Jade looked at Rose worriedly. “Do you suppose we should go after him? What if something's happened back at camp?” She was biting her bottom lip again, a sure sign that she was worried.

“I suppose we must,” Rose said with a sigh, feeling her earlier anxiety returning and resigning herself to telling Jade tomorrow, at some point before she left. Maybe she could just write a note...

“Jade, wait.” she called, surprising herself. “Look, there really is something I have to tell you. Jake is entirely capable of taking care of himself, I'm sure he's just having a bit of fun. You've said yourself that the crabs mostly just get tetchy and make a ruckus. I'm sure everything is okay.” she paused and took a deep breath. “But this is important.”

All that was left of the sun was a glowing gold thread on the horizon, and Rose knew that it was now or never. She pushed her nerves aside and just started talking.

“It's not easy for me to talk about these kinds of things. I'm good working through other people's feelings, but I have a lot of trouble dealing with my own. I don't understand a lot of what I feel, but Jade, I... I care about you a lot. I've only known you for a few months but you're different from anyone I've ever met in my entire life. I've never felt this way about anyone else before.” She trailed off, unsure of how to continue.

“How do you feel, Rose?” Jade asked, and her voice was so soft and she was so close and Rose could feel it, the moment that her heart gave in.

“I feel like, like I'm falling in love with you.” she stared intently at the sand, but Jade put a hand under her chin and tilted her face up so their eyes could meet. Jade looked uncertain. She was still worrying her lip with her teeth, and she was frowning slightly.

“I think I'm going to mess this up.” was all the warning Rose had before Jade suddenly leaned in and kissed her. It lasted a heartbeat with neither of them moving before Jade pulled back and huffed. Rose didn't even have time to form a coherent thought before Jade drew her in again.

And that time, something was different. Jade was so warm and Rose brought her hands up to touch Jade's hair and there was just so much sensation and Jade's lips were so soft as they moved against hers. Rose had the fleeting thought that maybe this is why people go so crazy when they're in love.

Jade pulled back slowly and touched her lips. “Wow...” was all she said, and they stood in silence a little longer.

“That went... better than I expected, I must admit,” Rose confessed after a moment. She couldn't quite bring herself to look at Jade quite yet, her cheeks burning red.

“I didn't think you liked me!” Jade blurted out suddenly, and Rose was too shocked to remember that she was embarrassed.

“What? Why would you think that?”

“Because.” Jade looked sheepish. “Well I talked to Feferi a lot about how to get someone to like you, and she gave me all these great ideas, but they didn't seem to be working! I thought you must just not like me.”

Rose was momentarily speechless. “Jade, I thought... I didn't realize you were trying to court me. I thought you were just being my friend.” She started to laugh all of a sudden. “We could have talked about this weeks ago, and had it out in the open!”

Jade smiled. “But it was kind of fun!”

“Yes,” Rose agreed, “In a way I suppose it was.”

“Soooo....” Jade drawled after another beat of silence, “Um, can I kiss you again?” She took Rose's hand and intertwined it with her own.

“Jade I don't. I don't know what I'm doing. I've never done any of this before. I didn't even know I liked girls until you came along.”

At Rose's sigh, Jade squeezed her hand. “Yeah, but I don't know what I'm doing either! What does it matter? We can learn together.”

And Rose had to smile at that. “Once again, you get right to the heart of the matter and leave all the complicated tangles behind.”

“Why should it be complicated though?” Jade asked her. “I like you, you like me. That's what's important.” Her eyes sparkled. “Now, can I please kiss you again? I really want to.”

“Well, there's no arguing with your infallible logic, I suppose I might as well give in now and make it easier on myself.”

Jade only laughed and kissed her again.

 

~

 

When they returned to the camp a little later, Rose was shocked to see everyone waiting for them. Aradia stepped forward, and seeing their clasped hands, smiled warmly. “Since it's your last night here, we decided a little celebration was in order. We... well, we _had_ a cake, but it seems something came along and snatched it. Jake took care of the offenders, but unfortunately we were unable to salvage it.”  
Rose couldn't help herself. She started to laugh and for once, let herself embrace the feeling rather than push it away. She was happy, and that was what mattered.

 

~

 

“Jade?” Rose asked softly a little while later. The party had wound down a bit ago, and she and Jade curled up together on her bed to relax. The dog-eared girl roused herself and looked up at Rose. “I was wondering. Well, I know it's a bit presumptuous to ask, but what will you do when I'm gone?”

  
Jade sighed heavily, “I don't know, Rose, I really don't. Part of me doesn't want to think about it, but the other part knows I have to.”

“Well, the reason I ask is because I was wondering if you'd like to come with me.” Rose closed her eyes and willed her heart to slow down.

“Come... with you?” Jade asked.

“I can't offer much, but I've got a small apartment close to a university. If you wanted I could help you get a citizenship, so you could go to school. You're brilliant, and you deserve to learn all you can. We can live together, if you want. I can't promise a happily ever after, but I can promise to try.”

“Do you really mean it?” Jade's voice was hesitant.

“Of course I do. I wouldn't have said so if I didn't.”

Rose watched Jade's eyes widen, and then the girl threw her arms around Rose. “Yes!” she whispered. “Yes yes yes yes yes! Oh, Rose! This is the most wonderful thing ever! I have to pack!” She bolted upright and dashed out of Rose's tent. However she was back a second later, and kissed

Rose deeply. “Goodnight. I'll see you tomorrow!” She whispered, and with that, she was gone.

Rose let out a breath. “As if I could sleep now...”

 

~

 

Morning found Rose saying goodbye to the team, now her friends, and trying not to cry. “We'll come see you in about a month, when we wrap up here,” Aradia promised. “We'll all need to meet up anyway to collaborate again.”

  
“Thanks for all your help,” Rose said honestly, as she hugged her. Aradia winked.

  
“I told you it would be ok!”

  
Aranea did cry, lamenting the loss of her intellectual partner, as she put it, but they promised to stay in touch.

  
Jade gave everyone huge hugs and flowers and didn't seem one bit sad to be leaving her only home. She had Bec with her, and Rose didn't even think to contest it as they all boarded the boat that would take them to Baker Island, where they would catch a flight to Hawaii, and then home. Jade seemed thrilled about the thought of flying and Rose was honestly excited to teach her as much as she could. As the boat pulled away, Rose took Jade's hand, and they waved at the island until it disappeared.

**Author's Note:**

> I have no idea what kind of alternate universe this is, where trolls are human, and ecto-siblings are related in different ways. I just wanted to pick a team of people that I felt would plausibly be working on this project. As for the project itself... I don't know, I just thought the idea of it sounded really cool!  
> Unbetaed as of right now, so any and all mistakes are my own.


End file.
